Monday 15 December 2014

Hearing Tests For Children and Adults

Checklist to Monitor the Hearing Development of a Child

Newborn babies as well as children are checked routinely for problems with their hearing for identifying problems early on in their stage of development. Although severe hearing problems during infancy stage are rare, early testing makes certain that any problem are picked up and managed as soon as possible.

It’s essential that hearing problems are identified early because any problem may affect language and speech development, education development and social skills.


Routine hearing tests

Shortly after the baby is born, they have their hearing tested. The screening is carried out before the mother leaves the maternity unit. However, in some areas it is carried out at home. If the baby doesn’t pass through the hearing screen, he/she is referred to a reputed audiologist for more tests. If there isn’t any reason to get bothered about after the paediatric hearing test has been conducted, the parents will be given a checklist to monitor the hearing development of their child. The checklist usually outlines the sounds, which babies make and the sounds, which they must respond to as they become older. 

A baby’s hearing must develop in the following way over the 1st year of life:
  • Right from birth-should jump hearing loud noises
  • One month of age-must start noticing sudden as well as prolonged sounds 
  • Four months old-must show excitement at sounds and smile in response to the sound of a known voice 
  • Seven to nine months-should babble, gurgle and coo and turn to a known voice across the room or to quiet noises made on each of the sides
  • One year old-should respond to a few words like their name 

When the child is between 2 and 21/2 years old, parents usually take their child to a doctor again for reviewing their general health and development. The review includes checking the child’s hearing as well as speech development in this stage.

Most of the children also have another routine paediatric hearing test when they start school at around 4-5 years old.

However, if your baby’s hearing hasn’t been tested after he or she was born, arrange for an appointment with a reputed audiologist in your area now! 

Tuesday 2 December 2014

What to Look For When Choosing an Audiologist in Bulleen?

There are many people in Bulleen who suffer from hearing loss. Some of them suffer from minor impairment whereas some others suffer from total deafness. But only a few people experiencing these problems wear digital hearing aids in Bulleen. The main reason to this is people’s unwillingness to admitting the disability. Many people also do not wear the device because of its price. It is quite costly.

Actually hearing aid technology has improved a lot in the last decade. Almost all the pieces that are used nowadays are digital and this technology has made it costly. In today’s technology, the sound in hearing aid goes clearly into the microphone. It is digitally processed by the chip, amplified and then sent to the ear. The improved technology enables the hearing aid to be programmed for the individual’s exact need. This is a huge improvement from the devices that were available in the earlier days.

However, it is not only the technical leap that has made the prices high. Previously, hearing aids were sold by professionals who also used to fit and adjust them as part of the overall cost. Now the system leaves room for a lot of greedy providers to take the rule. However, if you are suffering from hearing loss, you should get in touch with one of the most reputed audiologists.

Audiologists are professionals who perform hearing tests and identify the treatment plans. They work with the patient to fine-tune and fit the hearing aid properly. 



What to look for: 
  • Educational qualification and training matter. Audiologists in Buleen are experts!
  • Audiologists degrees are quite advanced-either a Masters in Audiology or a Doctorate of Audiology.
  • Audiologists are actually trained for identifying, treating and managing hearing and balancing problems. They must be able to offer counselling advice and clinical assistance to you.
  • Commitment to you in offering their service and follow up
  • Communicate regularly
  • Must be up-to-date with modern technology
  • Guarantee to offer the best care possible
  • A comprehensive hearing tests, fitting and verification processes
  • Great reputation  and patient testimonials
  • Awards and rankings 



The #1 reason for patient satisfaction and success with hearing aids in Bulleen is attributed to the skill, knowledge, professional care and guidance of the audiologists.